Overshoe



July 29, 1930. K. L. VALENTINE ET AL 1,771,726

OVERSHOE Filed March 16, 1927 Patented July 29 1930 Our inventionrelates to overshoes having UNI-1m STATES KArnaYNf L. vnrinnfrrnn Ania"enone'n R SEY, or JERSEY, any, new JERSEY; ELEANOR MAY aAiesEY, nxncurmxor GEORGE RAMSEY, nncnnsnngnssienons T srmivenmovnesnon co ine, Aconronn rionor New JERSEY oviinsnon Application sitar/men 1e, 192v.Serial1 T o. 1"7 5,854.

, a sole portion and an inelastic-shoe and inserted foot covering soleportlo 'n portion secured to said Our invention includesithe provisionof means to make sald overshoes readily attachable to the foot. In placeof the troublesome snaps,'-buckles,slidefasteners or other devices atpresent'used to attach overshoes to elastic memberpreferably be nglimited in feet, we so construct the top portion ofour overshoe that itmay readily expand and'insert an elastic member at the upper mouth,

endthereof tocaus-e contraction of the mouth and also yieldableto permitexp anslon of the "mouth for insertion of the foot, the

its stretching movement to less than its elastic movement by theinelastic extended mouth. Itis thus apparent that inorder to insert thefoot, it is merely necessary to pull the front portion ofthe topforward, permitting the side, front and-back connected'portions toexpand the mouth into which the foot may then be readily inserted andthen to permitthe elastic 'member to contract to firmly retainthe mouthand entire overshoe to the foot and lower portion of the leg. In

order to take an overshoe ofl' equipped with our invention, it ismerelynecessary topress down the heel thereof wlth the other foot andthe elastic member in'the mouth will expand,

permitting the mouth to give to its open expanded position andpermitting the ove'rshoe toslide off the foot,anzoperationsimilarto"that of thepresent day-practice of taking 2 off a rubber.

' A'further object ofour invention is to provide a construction whereinthe connect ng side portions of the front and topbackportionsareadapted, when the overshoe is at tached -to-the foot, toform infolded flaps,

{normally concealed from view by the overlap -of said front portion onsaid back portion.

. To normally conceal the spiralspring'or other elastic member employed,we preferably provide an nelastic covering therefor of'acircumferencesubstantially equal to that i ,of the expanded mouth and we provide thefront and back portions of' the top with separate frontand rear flapsattached to the Figure 4.

upper edges thereof, adapted, when the overshoe is in an attachedpositionyto be folded expansion thereof comprises an elastie legCOVC-Zllllg member, such as an ordinary woolen stocking havingthefootjportion thereof cut off andthe lower edge thereof secured withinsaid top, which normally extends upwardly from said mouthand which may,whennot' desired to be used as a leg covering, be rolled down to aposition surrounding said mouth.

VVhave found thatisuch a normalwoolen. "stockingvportion when soattached willhavc sufficient inherent resiliency to contract the mouthof the overshoe to retain the overshoe to, the footand willexpandsufliciently with theexpansionlofithe mouth topermit with draw-alof thefootfrom the overshoe. If desired, as, shown, thi'smay be usedinaddition to the separate spiral spring or other elastic membernormally surrounding the mouth. j These and such otherobjects'of our invention as mayhereinafter appear will be best understoodpfrom'adescription of em accompanying drawings. i i- V In the drawlngs, Flgure1 is a perspective employing the elastic legcovering, with the mouthcontracted, in attached position on the tions of'the front and rear topportions.

Figure 2 is a viewisimil'ar-to Figure 1 with the rear flapupturnedandthe mouth expanded to open position for insertionior removal of thefoot. i

- Figure 31isa detailed view of the mouth of the overshoe;

Figure-4 is a perspectiveview of theprei ferred embodiment. of ourinvention with the additional elastic leg covering memberattached,

V bodiments thereof, s,uch as are shown in the a view of an embodimentofour invention not Figure :5is a side elevation in'section ofthe mouthport on of theembodiment ShOWl'llIl Figure 6 isa detail View of themeans we adjustable.

preferably employ to make the spiral spring In the drawings, whereinlike characters of referenceindicatelike parts throughout, 10

generally indicates an overshoe constructed in accordance with ourinvention. lVe prefer-- ably construct our improvedovershoe with theusual sole. portion lland the usual top portion'112 secured to said soleand adaptedto cover the upper part of the shoe and inserted foot. Thetop portion 12'terminates in the expansive mouth 13 at the upper endthereof. We preferably construct the top portion with a rearportion 16,a separate front portion 1 1 and connecting portions 18 for said frontand rear portions at. each side ofsaid 'overshoe,

adaptedwhen iniclosed' position to form the .infolded flaps '18 -when'attached "to the wearers foot, normally concealed from View by theoverlap of said front portion 14 on said back portion 16 and to'open'upwhen said front portion'is stretched forward as .shown in Figure 2, forinsertion or-removal of the foot, the. entire top functioning in 1tsopenlng and closing movements somewhat similar to. a bellows.

g It isthus apparent that if the top portion, is so constructed, it willhave the expansible mouth 13 at the upper end thereof which, when inclosed position on the foot, will assume the position shown in Figure 1,and, when in open position for instance or removal of the foot,-wil1assume the expanded posi- 20 may be employed, we preferably employ thespiral spring 20, shown in detail in Fig- .ure 6, and preferablyprovided with ameans- 22' to connect the ends of the spring. We alsopreferably so construct the mouth. 13 of the top portion 12 and'select aspring of the desired resiliency so that the inelastic expanded mouthwill limitthe stretching movement of the elastic member 20 to lessthanits-elastic limit so that the spring 20 will never be'normally stretchedbeyond its elastic limit and will lasta relatively long time in use tofirmly retain the mouth '13 enclosed around the foot; If desired othermeans may beemployed,to prevent the extension of said spring beyond itselastic limit, (such as the cord21 inserted within the spiralspring 20).

' To normally conceal the elastic member .20 at the mouth of the top, wepreferably surround said mouth 13 with a hollow inelastic around saidmouth 13 by the stitches or other means- 26. To further conceal saidelastic member 20 and covering 24, 'we-preferably provide the front andrear portions 14 and 1b, respectively, with front and rear flaps 25 and28, respectively, separately attached to the upper edges thereof. Saidfront and rear flaps 25 and 28, as shown in Figure 1, are adapted whenthe overshoe 10 is in attached position on the foot, to be foldedoutwardly and downwardly to conceal said elastic member 20 and'covering24.

As stated, our invention broadly comprises any type of elastic memberattached to said top, normally adapted to retain said mouth closed toyieldingly retain the overshoe to the shoe and inserted foot and toexpand for insertion or removalof the foot. In place of the spiralspring 20, we may attach other types of elastic members which may, inaddi-.

tion, if desired, perform additional functions. In Figures 4 and5, wehave shown an elastic member of this type which comprises the elasticleg covering member 30 having its lower edge 32 secured within said top12 and normally extejndingupwards through said mouth 13...- In theembodiment shown.

said elastic legcovering member comprises a I'QSlllGIltWOQlen stocklnghavlngthe footpor- .tion thereof cut off and the lower edge 32 thereofstitched within the insideof-said top 12 and the upper portion 34thereof projecting upwardly through said mouth and adapted to beextended, if desired, to the wearers knees to form a legcoveringintegrally attached to said overshoe. In Figure 4, we have shownthe leg covering 30 in intermediate position, in other words, partiallyrolled. Ifdesired, itmay be entirely rolled down in acylindrical foldand surround the mouth when not desired as a leg covering. It isapparent that if an ordinary woolen stocking be employed as the separateleg covering 30, it will have sufficient inherent'resili'ency tonormally retain the mouth portion 13 closed around the foot to retainthe overshoe to the foot and sufiicient inherent exp'ansibility toexpand with the expansion of the mouth to permit insertion andwithdrawal of .the

foot. I Said leg covering member may be used alternatively with or inaddition to the elastic member 20 as in the embodiment shown in Figure4.

It isapparent that we have provided a novel type of overshoe very easilyattached to the foot and have eliminated the troublesome snaps, slidefasteners, buckles or, other types of devices formerly employed tosecurethe overshoe thereto. To attach, it is merely necessary to pullthe front portion 14 forward llu or rear portion'16 backward, the memberun der tension 20 and/orlegcovermg member 30 readily expandmgto theirextreme position asshown in Figure 2, their expanding movement beinghunted by the circumference of theexpanded inelastic mouth 13, when thefoot and attached shoe may. be readily inserted or withdrawn from theovershoe. To detach, it ismerely necessary to put the toe of theopposite foot againstthe heel and push downon. the heel thereof, whenthe elastic:

members 20. and 30 willcxpand, permitting the moutl113 to open uptoexpanded position to permit the overshoe to slide off thelfoot.

-.- If desired, however, in taking off the overin use to stopcirculation therein. As a coil spring ceases to be under tension whennotextended, we employ one as our preferred form of elastic means Thetop port1on12 may extend upwards. beyond the foot and cover a certainportion of the leg, depending on the height of the foot coveringemployed. Though in the claimszwemerely refer to the foot, it is obviousthat if a high foot covering is employed, it may in actual practice alsocover a part of the leg.

Our inventionis adapted for use in any type of overshoe such asgalosh,legging, spat or otherwise, preferably one which is waterproof, and'wetherefore in the claims employ the word overshoe to mean any separatecovering for the foot thatwould be worn over a shoe, pump, slipper orother normal type of foot covering, and when in this application weemploy the words attached to the foot etc. we refer to'the foot as beingcovered with a suitable inner foot covering such as a shoe.

It is understood that our invention is not limited to the specificembodiments shown and that various deviations may be made therefromwithout departing from the spirit and scope of theappended claims.

We claim:

1. An overshoe, comprising a sole portion and an inelastic leg portionsecured to said sole, said leg portion having a rear portion, a frontportion and connecting portions therefor at each side thereof adapted toform infolded flaps concealed by the overlap of said front portion onsaid rear portion, an elastic. member attached to said leg portion nearthe" top thereof to retain said mouth closed and to expand for insertionor removal of the foot,

said member being limited in its stretching movement to less than itselastic limit by the expanded top, a hollow inelastic covering for saidmember, front and rear flaps attached to the upper edges of said frontand jacent said top.

rear portions adapted to be folded outwardly and downwardly to concealsaid elastic member'and covering, and an elastic leg covering memberhavingits lower edge secured within the top of said leg portion andextending upwardly from the top and adaptedtobe rolled down when notused to a position ad- 2. An overshoe, comprising a sole portion and aninelastic leg portion secured to said sole and termmatmg in anexpansible mouth at the upper end thereof, elast1c means at tached tosaid leg near the mouth thereof adapted toretain said mouth closed toyieldingly retain the overshoe to the foot and to expand for lnsertionor removal of the foot, but limited in its stretching movement to lessthan its elastic limit, and a hollow inelastic covering for said means,said covering being secured to said leg and having a lengthsubstantially equal to that of'the expanded circumference of said mouth.

3. An overshoe', comprising a sole-portion and an inelastic leg portionsecured to said sole and terminating in an expansible mouth at the upperend thereof, comprising a rear portion, a front portion and connectingportions therefor at each side thereof adapted to form infolded'flapsconcealed by the overlap of said front portion on said back portion, anelastic member attached to said leg near the mouth thereof adapted toretain said mouth closed and to expand for insertion'or removal of thefoot, but limited in its stretching movement'to less than its elasticlimit bythe expanded mouth formed by the upper edges of said front, rearand'expanded' connecting portions, and front and rear flaps attached tothe upper edges of said front and rear portions adapted to be foldedoutwardly and downwardly over said leg to conceal said elastic member.

4. An overshoe, comprising a sole and an inelastic leg secured tosaidsole and terminating in an exp ansible mouth at the upper endthereof comprising a rear portion, a

front portion and connecting portions therefor at each side thereofadapted to form in folded flaps concealed by the overlap of said frontportion on said rear portion, a spiral spring attached to said leg nearthe mouth thereof adapted to retain said mouth closed and to expand forinsertion or removal of the foot, but-limited in its stretching movementto" less than its elastic limit by the expanded mouth, a hollowinelastic covering for said spring,'said covering being secured to saidleg, front and rear flaps attached to the upper edges of said front andrear portions adapted to be folded outwardly and downwardly to concealsaid spring and covering, and an elastic leg covering memberhaving itslower edge secured withinsaid leg and extending upwardly from said legand adapted to be rolled down to "a position adjacent said' top.

sole and terminating in an expansible mouth at the upper end thereofcomprising a rear portion arfront portion and connecting portionstherefor at each side thereof adapted to form infolded flaps concealedbythe overlap of said front portion on said rear portion, and resilientmeans attached to said leg and extending around said mouth adapted toretain said mouth closed and to expand for insertion or removal of thefoot but limited in its stretching movement to'less than its elasticlimit by the expanded mouth formed by the upper edges of said fron trear and expanded connecting leg portions. 1

6. An overshoe comprising a sole and an inelastic leg secured to saidsole and terminating in an expansible mouth at the upper end thereof,comprising a front portion, a rearportion and connecting portionstherefor at each side thereof adapted to form infolded flaps concealedby the overlap of said front portion on said rear portion, resilientmeans attachedto the top of said leg and extending across 7 saidconnecting portions adapted to retain said mouth closed and to expandfor insertion or removal of the foot but limited in its stretchingmovement to less than its elastic limit by the expanded mouth formed bythe. upper edg s of said front, rear and expanded connecting legportions, and a hollow inelastic covering loosely enclosing saidresilient means attached to said leg across said connecting portion. 7.An overshoe of the. class described com prising an expansible upperportion, elastic means secured to said upper portion to retain saidortion in contracted osition and a fiexiblemember secured to theupperedge of said portion adapted to be folded downwardly against saidportion to conceal said elastic means.

8. An overshoe of the class described comprising an expansible upperportion having inelastic front and rear sections, a flexible insertconnecting said sections, said front section and insert being adapted tomove rearwardly to lie over said rear section so that the front sectionoverlaps the rear section with the insert between the overlapping poretions of the sections, and elastic means secured to one of said sectionsto retain said sections in contiguous relation.

9. An overshoe, comprising a sole portion and an inelastic leg portionsecured to said sole and terminating in an expansible mouth and saidfront portion overlapping said rear portion and permitting said mouth tobe opened by separationof the front and rear portions.

10. An overshoe, comprising a sole portion and an inelastic leg portionsecured to said sole and terminating in an expansible mouth at the upperend thereof comprising-a rear portion and a front portion adapted forrelative separable movement, a resillent member surrounding said front.portion near the top thereof and cooperating with the rear portion tonormally retain said mouth closed While permitting said mouth to beopened by septhereof and cooperating with the front por-' tion tonormally retain 'said mouth closed while permittingsaid mouth to beopened by separation of the front and rear portions,

and a flexible member extending from the top of the rear portion andfolded down to conceal said resilient member.

In testimony whereof, .we have signed our names to this specificationthis 10th day of March, 1927. v

' KATHRYN L. VALENTINE.

GEORGE RAMSEY.

at the upper end thereof comprising a rear portion, a front portionadapted to normally overlap the exterior of the rear portion at eachside of the overshoe, connecting members between said portions .at theoverlap and normally lying in a plane between said portions andsubstantially parallel thereto, and means acting to retain said mouthclosed

